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PRINCETON,    N.     J. 


Seetio:!  ...T 


5>t«-//-.. 


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Kntemiietance,  a  fust  cause  for  alarm  antr  rircrtiom 

SERMON, 

PREACHED  AT  WEST  SPRINGFIELD, 

April  5th,    1827, 

THE  DAT  OE 

THE  ANNUAL  FAST 


BY       ' 
WILLIAM  B.  SPRAGUE, 

PASTOR  OF  THE  FIRST  CKURCH  IN  WEST  SPRINGFIELD. 


■<1  ."i 


NEW-YOllK: 

PRINTED  BV  J.  SEYMOUR,  JOHN-STREET. 

1827. 


SERMON. 


Psalm  cxix.  158. 
/  beheld  the  transgressors^  and  was  grieved. 

This  passage  contains  a  faithful  expression  of  the  feel- 
ings of  every  good  man,  in  view  of  the  prevalence  of  irre- 
ligion.  Whether  it  be  open  and  flagrant  crime,  which 
sets  at  defiance  human  law  ;  or  whether  it  be  error,  per- 
verting the  intellect,  and  winding  its  deadly  way  through 
the  whole  moral  system  •,  or  whether  it  be  only  that  good- 
natured  inconsideration,  which  sits  down  contented,  while 
the  soul  is  in  fearful  jeopardy ; — in  either  case,  the  good 
man  beholds  it,  and  is  grieved.  He  is  grieved  at  the  dis- 
honor which  the  wicked  man  casts  upon  God ;  at  the 
pernicious  influence  which  he  exerts  upon  society ;  at  the 
evils  which  he  brings  upon  himself  in  the  present  life  ;  and 
especially,  at  the  more  fearful  evils  which  await  him  in  the 
eternal  world. 

But,  while  the  text  is  a  fair  representation  of  the  feehngs 
of  good  men,  in  view  of  the  prevalence  of  irreligion  in  its 
most  extended  sense,  it  speaks  the  feelings  of  many  others 
in  respect  to  the  prevalence  of  gross  immorality ;  for  it 


does  not  require  that  a  man  should  be  taught  by  the  spirit 
of  God,  in  order  to  perceive  that  vice,  in  any  form,  must 
exert  a  bad  influence  upon  society.  Hence  it  is,  that  in 
the  heart  of  many  a  man,  who  never  felt  an  emotion  of 
love  to  God  or  love  to  souls,  we  may  still  find  a  powerful 
advocate  for  external  morality :  and  the  ear  that  will  not 
listen,  and  the  heart  that  will  not  beat,  to  considerations 
drawn  from  the  eternal  destiny  of  man,  will  yet  hear  and 
feel  other  considerations,  which  have  a  bearing,  princi- 
pally, upon  his  present  existence. 

In  the  following  discourse,  I  shall  limit  the  application 
of  the  text  to  a  single  vice,  viz.  Intemperance.  And  it  is 
a  subject,  in  the  discussion  of  which  I  am  happy  to  feel 
that  I  shall  have  enlisted  on  my  side,  not  merely  the  pious 
sensibilities  of  the  christian,  but  the  lofty  aspirings  of  the 
patriot,  the  tender  sentiments  of  kindred,  and  the  favor- 
able regards  of  every  well-wisher  of  society.  To  every 
heart  within  these  walls,  that  mourns  when  God  is  disho- 
nored— that  deprecates  the  future  miseries  of  the  lost — 
that  desires  the  promotion  of  public  or  private  happiness, 
or  that  sympathizes  in  human  wo, — I  would  appeal  in 
behalf  of  the  object  for  which  I  am  now  to  address  you. 

I  shall  endeavor  to  show — 

I.  That  the  evil  which  this  subject  contemplates,  furnishes 
ground  for  serious  alarm  ; 
II.  That  every  one  has  a  duty  to  perform  in  relation  to 

it;  and, 
III.  Illustrate  the  obligation  which  binds  to  this  duty. 


I.  I  am,  first,  to  show  that  the  evil  which  this  subject 
contemplates^  furnishes  ground  for  serious  alarm.  This 
will  appear  whether  we  consider  its  nature,  or  its  extent. 

Suppose  a  monster  in  human  form,  should  find  his  way 
into  your  dwelling ;  and,  first  of  all,  should  cast  an  evil 
eye  upon  your  property,  and  by  a  series  of  efforts,  should 
succeed  in  cheating  you  to  your  last  farthing.  And  not 
satisfied  with  having  made  you  a  beggar,  suppose  he 
should  go  out  into  the  world,  still  farther  to  injure  your 
character,  and  should  succeed  in  making  you  an  object  of 
universal  contempt.  Suppose  he  should  cause  some  para- 
lyzing process  to  pass  upon  your  intellect,  and  should 
prematurely  reduce  you  to  a  state  of  mental  imbecility. 
Suppose,  farther,  he  should  form  a  design  against  your 
life ;  and  either  by  mingling  poison  with  your  food,  or 
plunging  a  dagger  into  your  heart,  or  by  some  other 
means,  should  bring  you  to  the  grave.  And  more  than  all, 
suppose  he  had  the  power  to  cast  your  soul  into  hell ;  and 
actually  should  be  the  direct  instrument  of  your  eternal 
destruction.  And,  finally,  suppose  that  in  consequence  of 
this  malignant  agency,  you  should  leave  to  a  helpless 
family  the  sad  legacy  of  poverty,  disgrace,  and  wretch- 
edness. 

But,  what  if  this  monster,  having  done  his  work  of 
destruction  in  ijour  family,  should  pass  to  that  of  your 
neighbor,  and  should  spread  through  another  dwelling 
the  gloom  of  poverty,  and  should  banish  from  it  the  smile 
of  cheerfulness,  and  should  open  its  doors  for  the  king  of 
terrors  to  come  in,  and  should  send  another  immortal  soul 
to  the  region  of  eternal  suffering,  and  should  doom  another 
family  to  the  perpetual  agony  of  a  broken  heart !     And 


what  if  he  should  enter  yet  another  dwelUng,  and  another, 
on  the  same  fatal  errand,  and  should  extend  his  circuit 
from  the  neighborhood  to  the  town,  from  the  town  to 
the  State,  from  the  State  to  the  whole  country,  and  his 
approach  should  every  where  be  the  signal  for  mourning, 
desolation,  and  wo ; — if  such  a  monster  were  actually 
abroad  among  us,  I  ask  you  whether  a  most  serious  alarm 
would  not  pervade  this  whole  community ;  and  whether 
every  man,  woman,  and  child,  would  not,  according  to 
their  several  ability,  lift  up  a  standard  against  him  ? 

Now,  my  hearers,  you  have  only  to  strip  this  monster  of 
his  human  form,  to  have  the  very  monster  which  our  sub- 
ject contemplates.  His  name  is  Intemperance.  His  birth- 
place is  hell.  His  errand  is  destruction  ;  the  destruction 
of  the  body,  and  of  the  soul.  In  his  train  follow  poverty 
and  disgrace,  widowhood  and  orphanage.  Does  any  one 
doubt  ?  Yonder  is  a  family  whose  head  was  once  beloved 
at  home,  and  respected  abroad.  But  he  became  intempe- 
rate. And  the  consequence  was,  that  though  the  names 
oi  husband  and  father  were  still  heard  in  his  dwelling,  yet 
they  only  indicated  what  he  had  been  /  and  they  who  thus 
addressed  him,  felt  that  other  names  than  those  of  wife 
and  children  belonged  to  them — the  names  of  ividow  and 
orphans.  His  intellect,  once  vigorous  and  penetrating, 
became  a  mental  chaos ;  and  his  heart,  once  alive  to  every 
generous  emotion,  became  cold  as  winter,  and  hard  as 
adamant.  His  character  was  oppressed  with  a  load  of 
ignominy :  to  the  expression  of  public  or  private  confi- 
dence succeeded  a  withering  and  universal  neglect.  His 
property  was  gradually  diminished,  till  the  last  remnant 
was  given  to  the  winds.    And  when  his  bloated  and  crim- 


sonecl  visage  told  that  only  the  dregs  of  life  remained,  he 
was  hurried- in  a  fit  of  intoxication,  and  by  an  awful  casu- 
alty, into  the  presence  of  his  Judge,  charged  with  the  guilt 
of  suicide,  in  respect  both  to  the  body  and  the  soul.  And 
the  inheritance  which  he  has  left  to  his  family,  consists  of 
bitter  mortification,  abject  poverty,  and  a  thousand  ago- 
nizing recollections. 

Now,  if  this  one  family  were  to  go  forth,  and  tell  the 
story  of  their  sorrows,  as  if  some  strange  thing  had  hap- 
pened to  them,  thousands  of  other  families  would  recognise 
in  it  an  accurate  description  of  their  own  experience  ;  and 
tens  of  thousands  of  widows  and  orphans  would  rise  up 
and  greet  them  as  companions  in  suffering.  Think  not 
that  the  evil  of  which  I  speak,  is  confined  within  narrow 
limits,  or  to  any  particular  class.  It  is  the  common  scourge 
of  our  country ;  insomuch  that  hardly  a  neighborhood  is 
to  be  found,  which  does  not  either  furnish  its  living  speci- 
mens of  the  evil,  or  exhibit  monuments  of  its  blasting  ten- 
dency in  blighted  hopes  and  broken  hearts.  You  may 
find  it  prevailing  in  the  mansions  of  the  rich,  and  the  cot- 
tages of  the  poor ;  in  the  circles  of  the  vulgar,  and  the 
circles  of  the  fashionable.  You  may  see  it  wasting  the 
vigour  of  youth,  entaihng  upon  early  manhood  the  decre- 
pitude of  old  age,  pouring  its  curses  along  the  path  of 
gray  hairs,  and  extinguishing  all  that  is  dehcate,  and  ami- 
able, and  of  good  report,  even  in  female  character. 

It  were  easy  to  present  before  you  an  array  of  facts  on 
this  subject,  which  were  enough  to  curdle  the  blood,  not 
of  every  christian  only,  but  of  every  patriot,  and  every 
philanthropist.  A  few  of  the  more  prominent  of  these 
facts  must,  for  the  present,  suffice.    In  the  city  of  Boston, 


8 

the  annual  expenditure  for  ardent  spirits  is  estimated  at 
upwards  of  two  hundred  thousand  dollars.  In  the  city  of 
New-York,  the  amount  expended  in  the  same  way  in  1820, 
was  one  million,  eight  hundred  and  ninety-three  thousand 
and  eleven  dollars.  In  this  commonwealth,  it  is  ascer- 
tained that  more  than  two  millions  five  hundred  thousand 
gallons  of  distilled  liquors  are  annually  consumed,  the 
expense  of  which  is  estimated  at  one  milUon  three  hundred 
thousand  dollars ;  and  supposing  the  whole  population  to 
be  five  hundred  and  fifty  thousand,  it  is  more  than  four 
gallons  for  each  man,  woman,  and  child.  Suppose  only 
three-fourths  of  this  expense,  which  is  considered  a  mode- 
rate estimate,  to  be  set  down  to  the  charge  of  intempe- 
rance, it  appears  that  nine  hundred  and  seventy-five 
•  housand  dollars  are,  in  this  way,  lost,  and  a  hundred-fold 
worse  than  lost,  to  this  commonwealth,  every  year.  In  the 
United  States,  it  is  calculated  that  more  than  thirty  mil- 
lions of  dollars  are  expended  annually  for  intoxicating 
liquors ;  and  the  pauperism  occasioned  by  them,  costs 
upwards  of  twelve  millions  more ;  so  that,  allowing  three- 
fourths  of  the  first  mentioned  sum  to  be  set  to  the  account 
of  intemperance,  it  appears  that  the  nation  is  taxed  for 
the  support  of  this  vice,  more  than  thirty-four  millions  of 
dollars.  It  is  calculated,  moreover,  that  ten  thousand  lives 
are  annually  sacrificed  to  it ;  that  more  than  two  hundred 
thousand  persons  are  diseased  and  impoverished  by  it ; 
and  that  it  is  the  occasion  of  far  the  greater  part  of  all  the 
crimes  committed  in  the  country.  And  is  it  so,  that  in 
this  land  which  boasts  of  its  light,  and  of  its  freedom,  and 
of  its  virtue — the  most  richly  favored  land  on  which  the 
sun  shines — this  debasing,  soul-destroying  vice  has  gained 


9 

such  extensive  dominion  ?  Is  it  so,  that  we  not  only  tole- 
rate this  monster  who  has  come  among  us,  but  open  our 
doors  and  our  arms  to  welcome  him,  and  even  pour  forth 
from  our  treasuries,  with  fatal  generosity,  the  means  of  his 
support?  Is  it  so,  that  the  cries  of  the  widow  and  the 
orphan  are  going  up  to  heaven  every  hour,  and  a  thousand 
graves  are  opening,  and  the  population  of  the  world  of  wo 
rapidly  increasing,  from  the  prevalence  of  this  vice,  and 
yet  the  community  can  slumber  over  it  as  an  unimportant 
matter  ?  I  cannot  doubt,  my  hearers,  that  you  are  all 
satisfied,  whether  in  view  of  the  nature  or  extent  of  this 
evil,  that  it  furnishes  just  ground  for  alarm  :  of  course,  you 
will  be  prepared  to  go  along  with  me  to  the 

11.  Second  division  of  the  discourse,  in  which  I  am  to 
show  that  every  man  has  a  duty  to  perform  in  relation  to 
this  subject. 

Every  man  has  a  duty  to  perform  in  relation  to  himself, 
and  in  relation  to  others. 

1.  In  relation  to  himself. 

And  here  I  begin  by  remarking,  that  the  confirmed 
drunkard  owes  it  to  himself  that  he  abandon  his  destruc- 
tive habit  immediately,  and  at  once.  It  is  a  rare  case  that 
you  will  find  even  a  drunkard,  in  his  sober  moments,  jus- 
tifying a  habit  of  intemperance ;  and  it  is  no  uncommon 
case  to  find  him  apparently  sensible  of  its  awful  conse- 
quences, and  even  resolving  that  he  will  become  a  tem- 
perate man.  But  it  almost  always  happens  that  he  wishes 
to  take  time  for  it ;  and  alleges  as  a  reason,  that  the  sud- 
den breaking  up  of  so  confirmed  a  habit  might  give  a  fatal 
shock  to  hid  constitution.     Now,  I  do  not  say  that,  in 

B 


'■»>' 


10 

making  such  a  declaration,  he  intends  to  deceive  others ; 
but  I  do  say,  that  in  forming  such  a  resolution,  he  actually 
deceives  himself;  and  that  the  event  will  prove,  as  has 
been  well  observed,  that  his  resolution  contains  within 
itself  the  principle  of  its  destruction.  You  might  as  well 
attempt  to  lead  about  an  angry  lion  with  a  cobweb,  or 
drown  the  awful  roar  of  the  cataract  in  the  sound  of  a 
whisper,  as  to  subdue  this  habit  by  such  feeble  means.  He 
who  would  do  any  thing  to  purpose,  must  begin  by  put- 
ting his  heel  upon  the  serpent's  head  ;  by  resolutely  resist- 
ing the  most  urgent  cravings  of  appetite  ;  for  if  he  under- 
take to  abandon  this  habit  by  little  and  little,  the  result 
will  inevitably  be  that  nothing  will  be  done,  and  he  will 
live  and  die  a  drunkard. 

Moreover,  it  is  by  no  means  true,  in  any  ordinary  case 
— and  in  this  remark  I  am  supported  by  the  highest  medi- 
cal authority — that  a  sudden  and  entire  change  in  this 
respect  would  be  of  fatal  tendency.  If  there  be  an  excep- 
tion from  this,  it  is  only  the  case  of  the  person,  who  has 
already  so  nearly  destroyed  by  intemperance  the  principle 
of  vitality,  that  he  must  inevitably  die  soon,  let  him  adopt 
whatever  course  he  may :  and  in  this  case,  the  question 
would  seem  to  be,  whether  he  should  become  the  victim 
of  a  beastly  habit,  or  should  die  in  the  cause  of  reforma- 
tion ; — a  question  of  no  great  importance,  as  respects  the 
continuance  of  life,  as  he  might  probably  die  about  as 
soon  in  the  one  case  as  in  the  other. 

Again :  There  is  another  class  loho  cannot  he  called 
confirmed  drunkards^  and  yet  can  hardly  he  ranked  with 
temperate  men; — those  doubtful  characters,  about  whom 
good  people  sometimes  whisper  to  each  other  their  anxious 


11 

forebodings,  and  are  afraid  to  speak  out  what  they  believe, 
lest  it  should  be  slander ; — those,  in  short,  who  have  cou- 
rage enough  to  take  up  the  adder  into  their  hands,  but  not 
enough  to  let  it  coil  in  their  bosom.  Persons  of  this  cha- 
racter, have  a  duty  to  perform  of  the  same  kind  with  that 
which  we  have  just  been  contemplating — the  duty  of  entire 
abstinence.  Probably  they  have  not  yet  so  much  as  thought 
of  resigning  themselves  to  a  habit  of  intemperance  ;  nor 
has  it  even  occurred  to  them,  that  the  elements  of  that 
habit  are  lurking  in  what  they  consider  the  innocent  prac- 
tice of  drinking  a  little  ardent  spirits  every  day.  But 
though  they  know  it  not,  the  fire  is  already  beginning  to 
kindle  in  their  system,  and  unless  it  is  speedily  extin- 
guished, it  will  rage  with  an  all-consuming  energy.  There 
is,  humanly  speaking,  hardly  a  possibility  that  they  should 
remain  long  upon  the  ground  which  they  now  occupy  : 
they  will  soon  either  go  back  to  the  ranks  of  temperate 
men,  or  go  forward  to  the  ranks  of  confirmed  drunkards. 
Let  them,  therefore,  retreat  immediately  from  this  path 
of  the  destroyer.  Let  them  have  no  fellowship  with  these 
unfruitful  works  of  darkness,  lest  they  should  soon  have 
formed  a  habit,  to  forsake  which  were  scarcely  less  diffi- 
cult than  for  the  Ethiopian  to  change  his  skin,  or  the 
leopard  his  spots. 

Again  :  Temperate  men  have  a  duty  to  perform  in  rela- 
tion to  themselves :  it  is  the  duty  of  remaining'  temperate. 
Time  has  been,  when  almost  every  person  who  is  now  a 
drunkard,  was  temperate,  and  probably  had  no  uncommon 
thirst  for  ardent  spirits.  And  how  was  the  change  effected  ? 
By  drinking  unnecessarily,  while  he  was  yet  temperate. 
Perhaps  the  unnatural  appetite  was  formed,  by  mingling 


frequently  in  scenes  in  which  ardent  spirits  made  part  of 
the  entertainment ;  or  perhaps  by  the  false  notion  that 
the  excitement  produced  by  this  stimulus  is  favorable  to 
exertion  ;  or  perhaps  merely  from  a  careless  imitation  of 
the  example  of  others.  But  clearly  the  foundation  of  the 
intemperate  habit  was  laid,  while  yet  he  sustained  the 
character  of  a  temperate  man  ;  and  it  was  laid  in  using 
strong  drink  as  it  has  been  supposed  that  temperate  men 
may  use  it.  Where,  then,  it  may  be  asked,  is  there  any 
safety  ?  I  answer — in  abstaining  from  it  entirely  where  it 
is  not  actually  necessary  ;  in  using  it,  not  to  cherish  or 
gratify  an  appetite,  but  only  for  purposes  of  real  utility. 
No  doubt,  in  some  few  cases,  it  is  useful  as  a  medicine ; 
and  as  such,  is  to  be  regarded  as  one  of  the  good  gifts  of 
God ; — but  to  persons  in  health,  it  has  been  pronounced, 
by  the  most  respectable  medical  authority,  to  be  worse 
than  useless.  Let  temperate  men,  therefore,  not  put  their 
temperance  at  hazard  by  dallying  with  temptation;  and 
if  ever  they  do  make  unnecessary  use  of  intoxicating 
liquors,  let  them  recollect,  as  a  rebuke  to  their  presump- 
tion, that  they  are  sporting  with  an  enemy  which  has 
slain  its  tens  of  thousands. 

2.  But,  secondly,  every  man  has  a  duty  to  perform  on 
this  subject,  in  relation  not  to  himself  alone,  but  also  to 
others, 

I  observe,  particularly — 

That  it  is  the  duty  of  all,  and  especially  men  of  wealth 
and  influence,  to  ivithhold  intoxicating  liquors  from  their 
entertainments;  and  to  do  mltat  they  can  to  banish  from 
society  the  mistaken  notion  that  furnishing  such  liquors  is 
one  of  the  rites  of  hospitality,  I  am  aware  that  the  practice 


13 

to  which  I  here  object,  is  extensively  prevalent ;  and 
that  many  a  man  who  would  shudder  at  the  thought  of 
giving  his  sanction,  in  any  way,  to  intemperance,  would 
think  he  offended  greatly  against  hospitality,  if  he  should 
fail  to  provide  for  his  guests  ardent  spirits.  If,  indeed,  on 
account  of  infirmity,  or  for  any  other  good  reason,  they 
need  it,  let  it  be  furnished  them  on  the  same  ground  that 
they  should  be  furnished  with  any  other  medicine.  But  I 
am  constrained  to  believe  that  the  custom  of  using  it 
indiscriminately  on  these  occasions,  which  has  so  exten- 
sively received  the  sanction  of  temperate  and  good  men, 
is  one  of  the  many  customs  in  society,  which  owe  their 
continuance  to  the  fact  that  they  have  not  been  examined. 
For  what  benefit  can  possibly  result  from  it  ?  It  does  not 
contribute  to  health.  It  does  not  promote  any  valuable 
purpose  of  social  intercourse.  It  only  spreads  a  snare  for 
those  towards  whom  it  is  designed  as  an  act  of  hospitality ; 
for  though  they  may  be  temperate  men,  it  is  never  to  be 
forgotten  that  the  same  was  once  true  of  almost  every 
individual,  who  is  now  a  drunkard  ;  and  that  the  unneces- 
sary use  of  ardent  spirits,  before  the  appetite  has  acquired 
much  strength,  is  usually  the  commencement  of  the  pro- 
cess by  which  a  habit  of  intemperance  is  formed.  I  repeat, 
then,  let  all — let  those,  especially,  in  the  higher  walks  of 
life,  the  influence  of  whose  example  is  extensively  felt, 
labor  to  produce  a  change  of  public  sentiment  on  this 
subject.  Let  your  friends  see  that  you  can  greet  them 
with  a  cordial  welcome,  though  you  place  no  intoxicating 
liquor  before  them.  Banish  tiiis  single  custom  from  society, 
and  you  will  have  done  much,  very  much,  towards  the 
suppression  of  intemperance. 


14 

Again :  It  is  the  duty  of  all  who  employ  laborers^  to 
endeavor,  to  the  extent  of  their  power,  to  deter  them  from 
the  use  of  ardent  spirits.  I  am  aware  that  1  shall  be  told 
that  such  stimulus  is  necessary  for  laboring  persons :  so  it 
has  been  regarded ;  and  so,  to  a  great  extent,  it  is  regarded 
still.  But  I  am  constrained  to  believe  that  this  also  is  a 
mistake.  Is  it  reasonable  to  suppose  that  our  Creator, 
who  has  doomed  man  to  procure  his  sustenance  by  the 
sweat  of  his  brow,  should  have  given  him  such  a  constitu- 
tion as  to  require  the  constant  use  of  an  unnatural  stimulus 
to  sustain  him  in  the  labor  to  which  he  is  destined?  I 
think  every  considerate  person  must  answer,  '  No.'  It  is 
not  denied  that  a  person  under  the  immediate  excitement 
produced  by  strong  liquor,  may  labor  with  an  increased 
degree  of  energy ;  but  it  is  a  law  of  our  constitution  that 
an  excited  state,  whether  of  body  or  mind,  must,  unless 
the  cause  is  continued  or  repeated,  be  of  short  continu- 
ance ;  and  that,  whenever  it  subsides,  there  is  a  depression 
of  the  system,  proportioned  to  its  previous  elevation. 
There  is,  therefore,  to  say  the  least,  in  regard  to  capacity 
for  labor,  as  much  lost  on  the  one  hand  as  there  is  gained 
on  the  other ;  for  even  if  the  stimulus  be  constantly  applied 
for  a  given  period,  yet  whenever  that  period  closes,  there 
must  succeed,  according  to  the  law  of  our  constitution 
just  mentioned,  a  degree  of  debility  bearing  a  fair  propor- 
tion to  the  previous  protracted  excitement.  And  it  is 
moreover  to  be  remembered,  that  the  same  quantity  of 
ardent  spirit  will  not,  for  a  long  time,  produce  the  same 
exciting  effect ;  so  that  there  will  be  the  same  necessity 
for  increasing  the  quantity  that  there  is  for  using  it  at  all. 
Let  any  candid  person  judge  whether  there  is  not  an 


15 

alarming  probability  that  such  a  course  will  grow  into  a 
confirmed  habit  of  intemperance. 

Methinks  I  hear  some  one  say,  "  that  is  all  speculation : 
we  who  have  to  labor,  know  from  experience,  that  ardent 
spirit  is  necessary  for  us."  But  how  far,  my  friend,  has 
your  experience  reached?  You  have  tried  labor  with 
ardent  spirit;  but  perhaps  you  have  never  tried  labor 
without  it :  and  if  so,  then  for  aught  you  can  tell,  you  might 
not  only  labor  without  it,  but  labor  more  comfortably  and 
successfully  than  with  it.  But  though  you  have  not  made 
the  experiment,  it  has  actually  been  made  in  many  instan- 
ces ;  and  it  is  believed  the  result  has  always  been  a  firm 
conviction  that  this  stimulus,  for  purposes  of  labor,  is  worse 
than  useless.  Many  a  man  who  once  made  daily  use  of  it, 
supposing  that  it  was  essential  to  keep  his  bodily  powers 
in  a  proper  condition  for  labor,  but  who  has  since  aban- 
doned it  altogether,  will  testify  that  he  has  in  no  respect 
been  a  loser,  but  in  many  respects,  a  gainer  by  the  change  ; 
that  on  the  whole,  he  accomphshes  not  less  than  formerly, 
and  with  far  greater  pleasure  and  advantage. 

But,  perhaps  it  may  be  said  by  some  who  employ  labor- 
ers, that  however  desirable  the  measure  now  proposed 
might  be,  it  would  be  impracticable  ;  as  persons  could  not 
be  found  who  would  consent  to  labor  on  such  a  condition. 
But  the  whole  difficulty  lies  in  the  fact  that  there  is  an 
error  in  public  sentiment ;  and  if  those  who  employ  labor- 
ers would  take  the  right  ground,  the  error  would  very 
soon  be  corrected.  But  how  is  it  ever  to  be  corrected,  if 
no  one  dares  to  set  his  face  against  it  ?  But  the  difficulty 
which  is  here  contemplated,  would  probably  be  found  to 
be  far  less  than  most  people  imagine.     It  is  confidently 


16 

believed  that  there  are  in  the  community,  even  now,  many 
laboring  men — men  of  principle  and  character — who 
would  readily  yield  the  use  of  ardent  spirit  from  a  regard 
to  the  cause  of  morality  and  virtue  ;  and  there  are  yet 
many  more,  who  might  easily  be  induced  to  adopt  a  simi- 
lar course,  by  a  small  addition  to  their  wages.  Let  it  be 
an  object  then,  with  all  who  employ  laborers,  to  root  out 
the  mistaken  notion  that  a  man  cannot  work  by  the 
strength  which  God  has  given  him,  without,  at  the  same 
time,  being  excited  by  intoxicating  liquor.  Let  them  appeal 
to  the  fact  that  others  do  labor  without  it,  and  even  more 
successfully  than  when  they  used  it.  Let  them  exhibit 
this  subject  in  its  various  important  bearings ;  and  if 
necessary,  let  them  increase  the  compensation  as  a  pre- 
mium upon  temperance ;  and  let  such  a  course  as  tliis 
become  common,  and  I  venture  to  say  that  such  a  change 
in  public  opinion  will  ensue,  that  there  will  soon  be  no 
difficulty  in  finding  men  to  labor  without  strong  drink. 
The  result  of  such  a  course  to  the  cause  of  temperance, 
could  not  fail  to  be  most  propitious. 

Again :  All  persons  who  arc  authorised  by  law  to  sell 
ardent  spirits.,  are  bound  to  use  the  right  in  such  a  manner, 
as  shall  not  minister  to  the  cause  of  intemperance.  This 
remark  applies  to  merchants  who  are  authorised  to  retail 
ardent  spirits,  but  are  forbidden  to  suffer  their  stores  to  be 
converted  into  tippling  shops.  It  apphes  also  to  persons 
who  keep  public  houses ;  and  in  this  case  the  law  would 
seem  to  give  somewhat  wider  scope  for  the  exercise  of 
discretion.  The  law  of  this  commonwealth  forbids  the 
innkeeper  to  sell  strong  drink  to  apprentices  or  minors, 
residents  in  the  place,  without  the  special  consent  of  their 


17 

guardians  ;  or  to  any  person  Avho  is  already,  in  any  degree, 
under  its  intoxicating  influence.  Here,  then,  in  this  latter 
case,  the  innkeeper  has  to  judge  in  respect  to  the  actual 
condition  of  those  who  ask  for  ardent  spirits ;  and  if  he  is 
satisfied  that  any  one  has  already  drank  to  excess,  he  vio- 
lates the  law  both  of  God  and  man,  if,  from  any  considera- 
tion, he  yield  to  the  request.  How  much  better  than  a 
murderer  is  he  who  puts  a  drawn  sword  into  the  hand  of 
a  madman?  And  what  shall  be  said  of  him,  who,  for  the 
sake  of  enriching  himself  a  few  pence,  puts  the  intoxi- 
cating cup  to  the  lips  of  a  man  already  intoxicated  ? 

And  here  I  cannot  but  remark,  that  persons  who  keep 
public  houses,  occupy  a  station  of  great  responsibility;  and 
that  the  course  which  they  adopt,  must  have  a  decisively 
favorable  or  unfavorable  bearing  upon  the  cause  of  tem- 
perance. Let  the  innkeeper  take  the  stand  which  becomes 
a  temperate  and  moral  man  ;  let  him  refuse  to  sell  strong 
liquors  to  minors  and  apprentices,  except  on  the  condition 
specified  by  law ;  let  him  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  the  pleas  of 
the  drunkard,  who  has  already  taken  so  much  that  he  can 
only  stammer  out  his  request  for  more ;  and  let  him  meet 
every  effort  of  opposition  by  an  appeal  to  the  prohibitory 
statute;  and  he  will  render  a  service  to  the  public,  which 
will  make  the  whole  community  his  debtors.  But,  on  the 
other  hand,  let  him  disregard  the  prohibitions  of  law,  and 
deal  out  ardent  spirits  indiscriminately,  without  respect  to 
age,  character,  or  circumstances,  and  there  is  great  danger 
that  his  house,  instead  of  being  a  peaceful  retreat  for  the 
traveller,  will  become  a  haunt  of  drunkards,  and  a  nursery 
for  hell.    From  it  there  will  go  forth  an  influence  in  favor 


18 

of  intemperance,  which  many  temperate  men  might  strive 
in  vain  to  counteract. 

I  have  spoken  of  the  duty  of  those  who  are  legally 
authorised  to  sell  ardent  spirits :  let  me  add,  before  dis- 
missing this  topic,  that  it  belongs  to  the  community  to  see 
to  it  that  this  duty  is  not  neglected.     There  is  reason  to 
believe,  in  respect  to  many  of  the  abuses  which  exist  in 
society,  that  they  have  been  so  long  tolerated,  that  many 
people  are  not  aware  that  there  is  any  law  against  them  '• 
the  law  has  slumbered  so  long,  that  they  have  forgotten 
even  its  existence.     And  in  respect  to  the  subject  now 
under  consideration,  the  difficulty  is,  riot  that  there  is  no 
law,  but  that  there  is  too  httle  energy  to  execute  it.     Let 
any  man,  who  is  determined,  by  every  means  in  his  power, 
to  suppress  intemperance,  take  the  laws  which  actually 
exist  on  this  subject  in  his  hand,  and  he  will  find  himself 
armed  with  no  contemptible  weapon ;  and  though  trans- 
gressors may,  at  first,  wag  their  heads  in  derision,  he  may 
soon  give  them  cause  to  drop  their  heads  with  shame.     I 
repeat,  then — let  the  law  be  made  to  minister  to  the  sup- 
pression of  this  vice:  let  it  be  executed  prudently,  but 
promptly  and  resolutely ;  and  let  those  who  affect  to  des- 
pise it,  be  made  to  sit  at  the  feet  of  the  magistrate,  and 
learn  the  wholesome  lesson,  that  the  way  of  transgressors 
is  hard. 

I  observe,  further,  that  it  is  the  duty  of  parents  to  train 
^their  children,  by  every  means  in  their  power,  to  habits  of 
temperance.  Who  that  knows  any  thing  of  the  process 
by  which  human  character  is  formed,  does  not  know  that 
the  influence  which  parents  early  exert  upon  their  chil- 
dren, is  usually  the  most  decisive  human  influence  that 


19 

is  ever  exerted  upon  them  ?  To  apply  this  consideration 
to  the  subject  before  us — if  the  parent  accustoms  his 
child,  from  an  early  period,  to  witness  the  frequent  and 
unnecessary  use  of  ardent  spirits,  and  the  child  is  allowed 
to  sip  his  part  of  the  deadly  potion ;  if  he  imbibes  the 
notion,  under  parental  authority,  that  the  daily  use  of 
this  stimulus  is  not  improper;  and  if  he  is  suffered  to 
go  abroad,  and  mingle  in  scenes  in  which  it  is  freely 
used; — rely  on  it,  that  child  is  educated  for  a  drunkard; 
and  if  he  does  not  become  one,  it  is  only  because  the 
most  cruel  parental  influence  has  been  counteracted  by 
the  special  providence  or  grace  of  God.  But  on  the  other 
hand,  let  the  parent  carefully  withhold  intoxicating  liquors 
from  his  child,  and  never  suffer  them  to  be  used  in  his 
family,  except  as  a  medicine  ;  let  him  frequently  inculcate 
lessons  of  strict  temperance,  as  well  as  show  himself  a 
pattern  of  it ;  let  him  guard  his  child  from  those  scenes 
in  which  the  free  use  of  ardent  spirits  is  not  only  justified, 
but  considered  honorable  ;  in  a  word,  let  it  be  his  constant 
aim  to  induce  him  to  avoid  even  the  beginning  of  this 
evil ;  and  it  is  almost  certain,  according  to  all  principles 
of  human  calculation,  that  that  child  will  grow  into  a 
temperate  man ;  and  the  good  influence  of  a  parent's 
efforts  will  attend  him,  as  no  small  security  against  in- 
temperance, to  the  close  of  life. 

We  look  to  you  then,  ye  parents,  for  the  most  efficient 
aid  in  the  prevention  of  this  alarming  evil.  We  are  glad 
when  we  are  able  to  enlist  the  eloquence  of  the  statesman, 
or  the  vigilance  and  energy  of  the  magistrate,  in  this  cause; 
but  it  is  upon  your  fidelity  in  preventing  the  evil,  that  we 
build  our  strongest  hopes.   It  is  for  you  to  decide  whether 


20 

this  poisonous  tree,  which  has  grown  up  among  us,  shall 
attain  a  still  more  gigantic  growth,  and  be  prolific  in 
curses  to  generations  to  come,  or  whether  it  shall  now  be 
hewn  down,  and  cast  into  the  fire. 

I  remark,  once  more,  under  this  article,  that  it  is  the 
duty  of  every  temperate  man,  to  improve  proper  opportuni- 
ties for  expostulating  with  the  drunkard,  in  respect  to  his 
destructive  habit.  I  am  aware  that  when  a  man  has  fallen 
into  this  habit,  his  case  is  often — perhaps,  too  often,  con- 
sidered hopeless ;  though  it  must  be  acknowledged,  judg- 
ing from  past  experience,  that  the  probability  of  reforma- 
tion is  but  small.  Still,  there  have  been  instances,  in 
which  confirmed  drunkards  have  been  completely  reform- 
ed ;  and  that  too,  in  consequence  of  the  seasonable  and 
earnest  expostulation  of  friends.  So  long  as  such  cases 
are  on  record,  or,  it  may  be,  have  fallen  under  our  obser- 
vation, there  is  no  reason  why  we  should  sit  down  in  des- 
pair, even  over  the  case  of  the  most  confirmed  drunkard. 
If  but  one  case  of  reformation  had  occurred,  so  that  no- 
thing more  could  be  said  than  that  reformation  is  not  im- 
possible, yet  the  object  is  so  important,  that,  with  no  other 
ground  of  encouragement,  we  should  be  warranted  in 
putting  forth  every  possible  ei:ertion.  Let  every  temperate 
man,  then,  as  he  may  have  opportunity,  sound  in  the  ears 
of  the  drunkard,  a  seasonable,  affectionate,  and  solemn 
warning.  Let  him  prudently  select  the  most  favorable 
season — a  season  when  he  is  entirely  free  from  his  unna- 
tural excitement — in  which  conscience  will  be  most  likely 
to  do  its  ofl^ice  with  fidelity,  and  the  various  considera- 
tions which  are  addressed  to  him,  most  likely  to  come 
home  with  ejffect.   Let  the  admonition  be  administered  in 


21 

the  spirit  of  tenderness,  and  let  it  appear  to  be,  and  let  it 
actually  be,  the  genuine  effusion  of  a  benevolent  heart ; 
and  let  it  be  preceded  and  followed  by  an  earnest  prayer 
to  God  that  he  will  give  it  effect :  and  laboring  in  this  way, 
he  has  reason  to  hope  that  he  may  save  a  soul  from  death, 
and  hide  a  multitude  of  sins. 

But  the  duty  of  which  I  have  here  spoken,  is  to  be  per- 
formed, not  only  towards  confirmed  drunkards,  but  also 
that  class  wlio  are  just  beginning  to  yield  to  temptation  ; 
who  have  actually  entered  the  downward  road,  while  yet, 
perhaps,  they  are  unconscious  of  their  danger.  I  know 
that  there  is,  in  some  respects,  more  delicacy  attending 
the  discharge  of  this  duty  in  the  latter  case  than  the  for- 
mer ;  but  let  it  be  remembered,  that  there  is  a  proportion- 
ably  greater  probability  of  success.  Have  you  a  friend  or 
a  neighbor,  then,  concerning  whom  suspicions  are  awake 
that  he  is  becoming  intemperate  ?  Decline  not  the  painful 
office  of  admonishing  him  of  his  danger.  Meet  him  at  the 
very  threshold  of  the  temple  of  vice,  and  warn  him  that 
they  who  go  in  thither,  return  not  again ;  that  they  go  to 
sacrifice  themselves  on  an  altar  erected  to  the  prince  of 
darkness.  And  this  seasonable  admonition  may  not  im- 
probably be  the  means  of  arresting  him  at  the  commence- 
ment of  his  course.  But  wait  a  little,  and  you  will  have 
to  encounter  the  strength  of  a  confirmed  habit;  you  will 
address  your  arguments  to  an  intellect  half  stupificd  by 
brutish  indulgence,  and  able  only  imperfectly  to  estimate 
them ;  you  will  make  your  appeals  to  a  heart  and  con- 
science in  which  the  sentiment  of  shame  and  the  sense  of 
guilt  have  become  comparatively  feeble:  in  short,  the 
event  may  prove  that  your  admonition  comes  too  late. 


22 

I  might  mention  several  other  ways  in  which  temperate 
men  may  labor  in  the  cause  of  temperance;  particularly, 
by  circulating  tracts  which  are  fitted  to  direct  public 
attention  to  this  object;  and  more  generally,  by  their 
efforts  to  promote  the  cause  of  christian  education,  and  to 
extend  the  influence  of  the  gospel.  But  I  shall  waive 
these  topics  for  the  present,  and  proceed  to  the 

III.  Third  and  last  division  of  the  discourse,  in  which  I 
am  to  illustrate  the  obligation  wJiich  rests  upon  every  man 
to  aid,  according  to  his  several  ability,  in  suppressing  intem- 
perance, and  in  promoting  the  opposite  virtue. 

1.  We  owe  this  to  the  cause  oi  humanity.  What  though 
the  intemperate  man  has  degraded  himself  by  his  excess ; 
what  though  he  may  have  exiled  himself  from  the  virtuous 
and  respectable  part  of  community,  and  even  from  the 
affections  of  his  nearest  friends;  yet  let  it  not  be  forgotten, 
O  man,  that  he  sustains  a  common  nature  with  thee:  he 
is  thy  brother  still ;  and  as  such,  thou  hast  no  right  to  shut 
up  thy  bowels  of  compassion  against  him.  Would  you  fly 
to  the  relief  of  a  fellow-mortal,  who  was  asleep  in  a  burn- 
ing house?  or  would  you  hasten  to  save  the  traveller,  who, 
at  midnight,  was  approaching  a  fearful  precipice?  And  if, 
in  either  case,  you  should  refuse  to  sound  the  alarm,  would 
you  forfeit  every  claim  to  the  common  sensibilities  of  a 
man?  What,  then,  must  be  said  of  him,  who  can  contem- 
plate the  case  of  the  drunkard  without  emotion ;  and  can 
sit  still  till  his  body  is  in  the  grave,  and  his  soul  is  in  hell, 
and  never  even  make  an  effort  to  reclaim  him? 

But  the  intemperate  man  is  not  an  insulated  being :  he 
ha,s  friends;  it  may  be  a  wife,  or  parents,  or  children; 


23 

every  one  of  whom  reaps  from  his  misconduct,  sooner  or 
later,  a  harvest  of  tears.     So  long  as  he  Uves,  he  subjects 
them  to  constant   mortification;    and   not  unfrequently, 
perhaps,  terrifies  them  with  threats,  or  assaults  them  with 
blows :  for  strong  drink  can  suspend  the  operation  not  of 
reason  only,  but  of  natural  aflfection ;  thus  doing  more  than 
to  convert  the  man  into  a  brute.    Moreover,  the  family  of 
the  intemperate  man  are  usually  sooner  or  later  destined 
to  poverty;   and  sometimes  the  widowed  mother,  who 
would  fain  listen  to  some  voice  that  should  comfort  her  in 
her  toils,  is  obliged  to  listen  to  the  cries  of  her  own 
children  begging  for  bread.     Is  there  a  chord  in  your 
heart  which  vibrates  to  the  notes  of  human  wo;  to  the 
sufferings  of  decrepit  old  age,  or  weeping  widowhood,  or 
helpless  orphanage?     Go  forth,  then,  and  labor  to  banish 
intemperance  from  the  world,  and  I  doubt  not  that  the 
blesising  of  many  ready  to  perish,  may  come  upon  you. 
You  do  well  when  you  give  from  your  abundance  to  sup- 
ply the  wants  of  the  destitute,  or  relieve  the  miseries  of 
the  wretched:  but  is  it  not  a  still  nobler  charity  to  pre- 
vent these  wants  and  miseries,  by  preventing  the  crimes 
which  occasion  them? 

2.  We  owe  it  to  the  cause  of  patriotism  that  we  be 
faithful  on  this  subject.  Do  you  sincerely  desire  the  pros- 
perity of  our  beloved  country?  Do  you  contemplate  with 
delight  the  extent  of  her  territory,  the  fertility  of  her  soil, 
the  grandeur  of  her  scenery,  the  rich  variety  of  her  natu- 
ral advantages?  Do  you  'dwell  with  grateful  emotions 
upon  her  history,  tracing  the  wonderful  interpositions  of 
Providence  in  her  favor,  and  marking  the  steps  by  which 
she  has  attained  to  her  present  elevation?  And  does  ima- 


■24 

gination  sometimes  hasten  forward  to  coming  ages,  and 
bring  back  a  report  that  your  country's  gfory  has  spread 
itself  over  all  lands,  and  that  her  institutions  have  exerted 
a  mighty  influence  in  the  renovation  of  the  world?  Then 
I  am  sure  you  cannot  sit  down  contented  to  see  this 
goodly  inheritance  marred  by  the  footsteps  of  Intempe- 
rance. You  cannot  behold  this  demon  corrupting  and 
degrading  your  countrymen,  without  being  roused  to  vigo- 
rous opposition.  As  you  love  your  country,  then,  and 
desire  her  prosperity;  as  you  wish  that  her  noble  institu- 
tions may  be  perpetuated,  and  that  it  may  be  seen  by  the 
world,  that  though  the  floods  should  come  and  the  winds 
beat,  the  fabric  of  her  government  cannot  fall,  being 
founded  upon  a  rock ;  I  exhort  you  to  endeavor  to  arrest 
the  progress  of  this  deadly  evil.  And  if  you  do  this,  not 
the  present  generation  only,  but  posterity  will  bless  you 
for  having  labored  in  the  cause  of  their  country's  glory. 
But  if  there  be  no  effectual  resistance  made,  and  our 
government  should,  ere  long,  go  down  to  the  grave  of 
republican  governments,  1  do  believe  that  the  hand  which 
should  write  her  epitaph,  would  inscribe,  '  Intemperance 
one  of  the  causes  of  her  destruction.'' 

Once  more :  We  owe  it  to  the  cause  of  religion  to  be 
faithful  on  this  subject.  Arc  you  a  christian?  Have  you 
been  not  only  baptized  in  God's  holy  name,  but  washed  in 
a  Saviour's  blood,  and  are  you  waiting  till  your  change 
come,  to  be  admitted  to  heaven?  Then  you  know,  in 
some  degree,  the  value  of  the  soul.  But  the  drunkard  has 
a  soul  ;  a  soul  which  must  exist  through  interminable 
ages,  but  which  the  Bible  has  declared,  cannot  enter  the 
kingdom  of  God.     Will  you  not  then,  put  forth  every 


25 

effort  to  break  up  that  destructive  habit,  and  cause  the 
spirit  of  God  to  visit  that  soul  on  an  errand  of  mercy,  and 
to  convert,  and  fit  it  for  heaven?  It  were  a  glorious  tri- 
umph to  recover  any  sinner  from  the  error  of  his  ways ; 
but  to  be  instrumental  of  raising  one  from  such  degrada- 
tion to  the  paradise  of  God; — Oh,  this  is  the  highest  honor 
which  Jehovah  ever  puts  upon  a  worm!  Can  you  de- 
scribe— can  you  conceive  the  ecstasy  of  the  moment  in 
which  you  should  meet  among  the  ransomed  of  the  Lord, 
some  soul,  who,  in  consequence  of  your  exertion,  had  not 
only  been  reclaimed  from  intemperance,  but  had  been 
washed,  and  justified,  and  sanctijied,  in  the  name  of  the 
Lot'd.  Jesus,  and  by  the  spirit  of  our  God? 

Are  you  a  christian?  Then  you  cannot  but  desire  that 
the  church,  and  every  branch  of  it,  and  every  individual 
member,  may  be,  what  God  requires  they  should  be,  lights 
in  the  loorJd^  thus  diffusing  a  heavenly  influence,  and 
causing  others  to  glorify  our  heavenly  Father.  But  here, 
again,  who  does  not  know  that  intemperance  has  found  its 
way  even  into  the  church;  and  that  more  frequently  than 
any  thing  else — I  may  say,  every  thing  else,  it  furnishes 
occasion  for  discipline,  and  brings  a  foul  stain  upon  the 
Redeemer's  cause  ?  If  then,  christians,  you  will  not  put 
a  reproach  into  the  mouth  of  the  ungodly,  or  cast,  a  stum- 
bling block  in  their  path ;  if  you  desire,  as  individuals, 
or  as  a  community,  to  exert  the  full  amount  of  influence 
which  you  are  bound  to  exert,  as  a  peculiar  people  ;  I  say, 
again,  labor  with  all  your  might  for  the  suppression  of 
intemperance. 

Are  you  a  christian?     Then  it  is  your  prayer  to  God 
that  the  cause  of  truth  and  piety  may  universally  prevail. 

D 


26 

You  desire  to  see  the  gospel  on  the  wings  of  the  morning, 
till  its  heahng  influence  shall  be  felt  to  the  ends  of  the 
earth.  But  before  this  blessed  consummation,  thousands 
who  are  now  asleep,  must  awake,  in  the  spirit  of  benevo- 
lence, to  this  glorious  enterprise.  But  in  suppressing 
intemperance,  you  actually  unclench  the  hand  of  avarice ; 
you  pour  contributions  into  every  treasury  of  the  Lord; 
you  increase  the  amount  of  that  influence  by  which  the 
kingdom  of  Christ  is  to  become  universal.  Let  the  wealth 
which  is  now  wasted  in  the  support  of  this  vice,  even  in 
our  own  country,  be  consecrated  to  this  great  object,  and 
songs  of  thanksgiving,  breaking  from  every  land  and  every 
dwelling,  would  soon  announce  that  the  grand  jubilee  of 
the  church  had  come.  Go  then,  christian,  and  proclaim 
this  fact  to  the  world :  tell  it  in  the  circles  of  the  rich  and 
the  honorable,  who  are  willing  to  labor  for  Christ-  tell 
every  christian  whom  you  meet,  that  there  is  a  fiend 
among  us,  perverting  to  purposes  of  destruction,  the  wealth 
which  God  gave  to  be  consecrated  to  the  cause  of  salva- 
tion. Let  there  be  a  united  and  vigorous  efibrt  to  wrest 
from  this  usurper,  treasures  which,  of  right,  belong  to  the 
church,  and  that  eflfort  shall  be  crowned  with  the  blessing 
of  Almighty  God,  and  be  the  harbinger  of  that  day,  when 
holiness  shall  universally  prevail  on  the  earth — when  a 
voice  shall  be  heard  from  heaven,  saying,  Behold  the 
tabernacle  of  God  is  with  men,  and  he  will  dwell  with  them, 
and  they  shall  be  his  people,  and  God  himself  shall  be  with 
them,  and  be  thei?-  God. 


